Happy 105th Birthday to Elmer Thill – AHS Class of 1932

April 21, 2016 by

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Happy 105th Birthday to AUHS Class of 1932 graduate Elmer Thill! He celebrated his 105th on April 19, 2019.

Thill is truly a treasured “Vintage Colonist.” Still true to his school, he continues to participate in AHSAA mixers, Alumni Breakfasts and the annual City of Anaheim Halloween Parades.

In fact, Elmer hasn’t missed a Halloween Parade since 1924, and remembers watching the procession from a second story window of his parents’ Central Hotel. He also marched in the parade playing the clarinet with the Anaheim Union High School Band.

Elmer still lives in the house he built more than 60 years ago on Citron Street, just a short distance from Anaheim High.

The AHS Alumni Associations wishes them many happy birthday wishes!

 

Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight

Baseball, Classic Cars More Than Just Pastimes for AUHS Class of ’56 Grad

April 6, 2016 by

1956-Del Drake 002Like many men from his era, 78-year-old Del Drake loves cars and sports, especially Fords and baseball. Of course, the vehicles he was driving while attending Anaheim High are now considered classics, and baseball has evolved from a game played with informal rules using improvised equipment to a big money sport that’s become America’s beloved pastime.

But classic cars and baseball are more than just hobbies for Drake, who has been recognized by the governor of Idaho for starting the first senior softball program in the state. And growing up with a father who was a mechanic known for coaxing the maximum speed from his vehicles, Drake’s life-long passion for cars just came naturally, as did his talent for playing ball.WP_003110

Trying to impress a girlfriend who he described as a “baseball nut,” Drake joined the Anaheim High team and played centerfield for Coach Wallin. He earned his girlfriend’s heart when his 1956 team won the CIF Sunset League Championship, the first time Anaheim High’s baseball team had achieved this honor since 1940. Drake still wears his Sunset League championship jacket and keeps a bookcase and trunk made in an AHS woodshop class in the loft of a barn on his 10-acre farm in Star, Idaho.

After leaving Anaheim High, Drake attended Orange Coast College, where he played football and baseball when he wasn’t taking HV/AC classes or heading to the beach for a game of volleyball. Once he graduated from OCC, Drake enlisted in the Navy and played baseball two years for the Armed Forces. When he got back home, he played in a Huntington Beach league.

WP_003107He already had a full-time job when Angel Stadium opened on April 19, 1966, but he didn’t consider his second job as an usher as real work since it put him closer to the game. Drake was there for opening day and continued working at the stadium for the next two and a half years.

Life went on and by age 40 Drake was still playing ball, this time fast pitch softball with such teammates as Irv Knowles from AUHS Class of ’58 who became an Anaheim City Councilman. It wasn’t until he moved to Idaho that finding a game became a challenge. His best friend since 6th grade, Al Tikker from Class of 1957, already an Idaho resident, urged Drake to join him, promising it was just like Anaheim in the 1950s, except spuds were the top crop instead of oranges.

On his second day of residency, Drake found the Boise Park and Recreation Department and asked about a senior softball league. When he was told there was no such program, Drake decided to help form a league.

Through advertising in newspaper and radio, he recruited 13 players, 9 of whom were California transplants. They played in a tournament that was covered by the “Idaho Statesman,” generating so many phone calls that Drake now runs a league of 18 teams with 150 players. He is now Idaho’s senior baseball league state representative, and the City of Meridian has proclaimed September 26th as Idaho Senior Softball Day.

He gets a lot of help managing the league from his wife Joyce Volpone, who attended Savannah High School in Anaheim. It’s a second marriage for both of them. Combined they have six children and eight grandchildren, including a grand-daughter who is a nationally ranked softball player. As a freshman on the varsity team, she hit a grand slam to win her high school championship game.

Only when baseball season is over is there time for his other passion: restoring his collection of classic cars and trucks.

His dad’s 1915 Model T has a preferred parking spot in Drake’s barn. The Model T is one of several vehicles his father owned. One of Drake’s first memories was standing at the steering wheel of his dad’s 1930s roadster. There’s also a photo of him sitting on his father’s only Harley Davidson, which appears in a book titled “The Indian Harley Davidson Wars” by Alan Girdler. His dad preferred Indians and he owned up to a dozen of the bikes throughout his life.WP_003103

His collection also includes a 1940’s Ford coupe and Woody, a 1951 red Ford pick-up and a 1969 4-speed Mach I Mustang he purchased in 1979 for $150. His coupe is bedecked with a Clem Colonist logo that reflects Drake’s sentiment that: “Once a Colonist, Always a Colonist.”

Due to the distance, Drake’s cars won’t be on display at the Oct. 15 Colony Classic Car Show, but he will be attending his 60th reunion on Oct. 1, to share his cherished memories of growing up in Orange County in the 1950s.  “I grew up in the right place at the right time,” said Drake.

Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight

No Inductees

March 8, 2016 by

No inductees this class year.

Filed Under: Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame 2015

Celebration of Anaheim Authors Highlighted by Hall of Fame Inductions of Two Long-Time Educators

March 5, 2016 by

Two long-time educators, Louise (Hitt) Booth and Minard Duncan were inducted into the Anaheim High Hall of Fame during a reception held Friday, March 4, at the AHS Library as part of a Read Across America “Celebration of Anaheim High Authors & Colony Inspired Literacy.”

4q Jerry, Barbara and Booths

Barbara Mahaffie ’58 with AHS President Gerald Woodward ’59 and the Booth Family, husband Donald and son David.

Booth, a English, drama and speech teacher at Anaheim High for two decades, was a noted author who left behind a literary legacy upon her passing at age 95 in 2012. Her husband of 68 years, Donald Booth, and son David attended the event, along with her close friends Barbara Mahaffie from Class of ’58, a long-time English teacher at AHS, and Marion (Caracasa) Thompkins from Class of 1953, who taught drama at AHS for several years and is still working as a drama teacher in Pasadena. Many of Booth’s former students were in the audience, including AHSAA President Gerald Woodward from Class of ’59, who had the honor of inducting Mrs. Booth in the Hall of Fame. Click here to see more photos from her induction.

Many family members, friends and classmates were on hand for the induction of Minard Duncan into the

Minard and his classmates and life-long friends.

Minard and his classmates and life-long friends.

AHS Hall of Fame. Duncan has been highly involved in the North Orange County community for more than 58 years serving children in the Fullerton School District, as well as his country and his 1950 classmates. Click here to see a collection of his induction photos. 

Prior to the reception, an Authors’ Forum was held in Cook Auditorum from 2 to 5 p.m. featuring Anaheim authors Sheila Lowe ‘67, Dennis Bateman ’89, Gustavo Arellano ‘97, and Tom Zaradich.

Monica Ortez was also on hand to share her co-authored book on the Mexican American Baseball Leagues featuring her father Ray Ortez from Anaheim High Class of 1937.

As part of the celebration, the AHS Alumni Association identified 20 graduates who have published books, three books written about Anaheim High alumni and a batch of books that include references to Anaheim High. To read more about Anaheim High’s rich literary legacy, click here.

Enjoy these additional photos from the event:

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Hall of Fame

Minard Duncan Hall of Fame Induction

March 5, 2016 by
Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight

Louise Hitt Booth Hall of Fame Induction

March 5, 2016 by
Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight

Minard Duncan – Class of 1950

February 29, 2016 by

Minard DuncanLong-time educator Minard Duncan will join 60 other outstanding Colonists in the Anaheim High Hall of Fame when he is inducted March 4 at a reception in the school’s library. Duncan was selected for his decades of work as an educator and for his role as an activist who has made a significant impact in his community.

Duncan has been highly involved in the North Orange County community for more than 58 years, serving children in the Fullerton School District. An educator who never left a child behind even before it was a national mandate, Duncan created programs that increased test scores and parent involvement and also founded a free children’s dental clinic with the help of Anaheim dentist Dr. Harris Done.

A home-town boy who attended Lincoln Elementary and Fremont Junior High before attending 1949-Duncan, M.Anaheim, Duncan went on to Santa Ana College where he earned an A.A. degree in 1952. His education was interrupted when he joined the U.S. Army in 1952 to serve in Korea through 1954. As soon as he returned home he enrolled in CSU Long Beach and earned his B.A. in elementary education in 1957. Shortly thereafter, he began his 41-year career with the Fullerton School District, where he taught elementary school for eight years and served as a principal for 33 years.

During that time he earned his master’s degree from CSU Long Beach in elementary education with an administrative emphasis, as well as a master’s in governance from the California School Board Association. He retired from the District in 1998, but continued working in education for CSU Fullerton until 2002, when he was elected to the Fullerton School District Board of Trustees, a position he held for eight years.

Duncan made a major impact in the lives of the children he served by recruiting the help of local business owners. When he took on the principalship of a low performing school, he recruited 50 small businesses to provide incentives to increase parent participation which, in turn, helped increase test scores from a 22 to 80 percent pass rate.

Another example of his town-and-gown efforts included starting the first free dental clinic in the City of Fullerton for children without dental insurance. He still is involved by securing funding for the clinic.1950-Minard Duncan Basketball 001

Duncan has received numerous awards for his work in education and the community, including the PTA Golden Oak Award, the highest PTA award presented; the Orange County Department of Education Outstanding Contribution to Education Award; the CSU Fullerton Honored Educator Award; and the Spirit of Volunteerism Award from the Volunteer Center of Orange County and the Orange County Register and the Leon Owens Foundation Making a Difference Together Award for Education Services.

Still an active community member, Duncan continues to participate in numerous organizations, including serving on the board of Pathways of Hope (formerly known as the Fullerton Interfaith Emergency Service); the Rotary Club of Fullerton; and on the board of the Museum of Teaching and Learning (MOTAL), an organization whose purpose is to educate people about education with traveling exhibits on subjects including the Mendez vs. Westminster School District court case that consequently desegregated schools in the United States

28-Mindard-Duncan-Class-of-1950In his spare time, Duncan enjoys golf, reading, water volleyball, camping and travel and, of course, spending time with his family, including son Phillip Duncan, daughter and son-in-law Denise and Richard Godhardt, three grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

A founding member of the Anaheim High School Alumni Association, Duncan is also busy supporting his alma mater by participating in alumni events and serving as one of his class leaders who have helped plan reunions for several decades.

Click here to view photos from his March 4, 2016 AHS Hall of Fame Induction.

Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight, Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame 2016

James Burns – Class of 1971

February 23, 2016 by

Burns, James-Class of 1971 001Jim Burns, Ph.D., is a renowned youth and family expert, an acclaimed author, and the founder of HomeWord, a radio program that reaches more than a million people across the country each day.

In partnership with Azusa Pacific University, where he is an adjunct professor, he established and now provides leadership for the HomeWord Center for Youth and Family, a research and training institute offering biblically based resources for parents and youth. Under Burns, the center has become the largest provider of Christian parenting and youth seminars in the United States.

His passion is communicating to adults and young people practical truths to help them live out their Christian lives. Burns is a three-time Gold Medallion Award-winning author and has written books for parents, youth workers, and students. He also speaks in person to thousands of people each year around the world. His recent books include Teaching Your Children Healthy Sexuality, Confident Parenting, and Creating an Intimate Marriage.

Burns and his wife, Cathy, and their daughters, Christy, Rebecca, and Heidi, live in Dana Point. For more information about Burns, visit homeword.com.

Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight

Invitation to March 4 Celebration of Anaheim High Authors & Colony-Inspired Literature

February 19, 2016 by

Cover pageAnaheim High, with support from the school’s Alumni Association, is staging a Read Across America celebration highlighting Anaheim High authors, as well as books that feature Anaheim High and its graduates. Student activities promoting literacy are also part of the week-long celebration that kicks off Feb. 29 and runs through March 4.

Appearances on the stage of Cook Auditorium by four authors, including OC Weekly editor and AHS Class of ’97 graduate Gustavo Arellano, student activities, an Alice In Wonderland-themed reception in the school’s library and a Hall of Fame induction are among activities that will take place during the week. All the events are free and open to the public.Schedule of Events

Throughout the week the AHS Library will serve as the event hub and site of a display featuring Anaheim High authors, including Lois Battle, a Class of ’56 graduate who achieved success in the literary world with seven bestselling novels. The display will also spotlight books about famous alumni, including Charles Walters (’30), an MGM director and choreographer during Hollywood’s Golden Age, and Marie Wilson (’33) of My Friend Irma fame who earned three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her work in radio, TV and film.

The celebration will culminate Friday, March 4, with an Anaheim High Authors’ Forum, 3 to 5 p.m. in Cook Auditorium, featuring a graduate who has become a celebrated voice in the Latino community, a Colony writer who published a book featuring Anaheim High haunts, an alumnae who has authored of a popular mystery series based on her experience as a forensic handwriting analyst, and writer and historiam Dennis Bateman, Class of ’89, who will talk about his book Anaheim Colonists Football – A Century of Tradition and The Orange County Football Book.

220px-Gustavo_arellano_2012Returning to his alma mater for the first time since graduating in 1997, Gustavo Arellano, editor of OC Weekly, is also the author of several books and a nationally syndicated column Ask A Mexican. He will speak about his evolution from an Anaheim High student leader to an award-winning writer.

Like her fictional character Claudia Rose in the award-winning forensic handwriting mystery series, Sheila Lowe from Class of ’67 is a practicing forensic handwriting expert. Also the author of the acclaimed The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Handwriting Analysis, Handwriting of the Famous & Infamous, and Handwriting Analyzer software, she is president of the American Handwriting Analysis Foundation, a nonprofit organization that promotes education in the area of handwriting. Sheila holds a master’s degree in psychology and lectures around the country and in Canada and the UK. Her analyses of celebrity handwritings are seen throughout the media.

Lowe and Suspense Publishing have made her book 6booksInkslingers Ball available to Anaheim High students to read as part of the celebration.

A popular subject among Anaheim High students is the rumor of ghosts that haunt the high school. It’s also a favorite subject of Tom Zaradich, author of Anaheim’s Dead – Ghostly Encounters With the Passed, which includes a chapter on Anaheim High and interviews with several AHS graduates and staff members.

After the authors’ forum, attendees will be invited to the AHS Library for a reception celebrating Anaheim High authors and supporters of literacy in the Colony community. A special mention will be given the school’s SkillsUSA program for its creation of free little libraries being placed throughout the Colony community.

June Glenn’55 and  Susan Faessel ’67 will also be recognized for their support of literacy in the Anaheim community. Another event highlight will be the induction of long-time Anaheim High teacher, writer and historian Louise Booth in the school’s Hall of Fame.

Thanks to a sponsorship by the AHS Alumni Association, all activities are free but donations of books are encouraged. For a list of titles requested by the AHS Library, visit: https://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/?ie=UTF8&cid=A1SDJXD5BSLQVG

Books may also be brought to the Friday event to be donated to the school library or the little free libraries.

The AHSAA has identified 19 alumni authors who will be recognized as part of A Celebration of Anaheim High Authors and Colony-Inspired Literature. Biographies, with photos, on each of these individuals, as well as information on books written about Anaheim High alumni, literature that includes photos or information on Anaheim High, are available at https://anaheimcolonists.com/celebration-of-anaheim-authors/

To RSVP for the reception or to inform the AHSAA of additional authors, please contact Janet Brown at anaheimalumni@yahoo.com or 714-726-4372.

 

Filed Under: Events

WWII Hero Hal Le Duc – Class of 1940 – Nov. 22, 1922 – Feb. 17, 2016

February 17, 2016 by

Hal LeDuc 1940The Colony community has lost Hal LeDuc who passed away Feb. 17, 2016, at age 93.

LeDuc, a WWII hero who distinguished himself as a U.S. Army Air Corps bomber pilot, shared memories of growing up in Anaheim at his son Mike’s funeral service in 2014. All three of his children are Anaheim High graduates including Jim from Class of ’63; Mike, Class of 65; and Dena, Class of ’77.

In an interview conducted by the AHS Alumni Association, LeDuc shared that he was born Nov. 22, 1922, in a home on the north side of the 1400 block of Lincoln. He remembered the Fluor family living nearby, as well as the Karchers and Dr. Utter, who lived in a two-story home at Lincoln and Ohio.

Hal’s dad was a citrus rancher and his family moved from the Colony to an acreage located at Placentia Avenue and State College. Their address was Route 4, Box 41.

Hal had his driver’s license by age 14 and recalled driving with his father to the mid-west. During the trip in a Model-A Ford soft-top coupe purchased for $150, LeDuc said they had to deal with 22 flat tires and a swarm of locust.

Life at Anaheim High was a happy time for LeDuc. He was a star tennis player throughout his four years at Anaheim. He won the Sunset League Double Tennis CIF championship in his junior and senior years, as well as several other tennis contests. He was also a member of the Hi-Y and the Varsity A Club during his time at Anaheim and played basketball.Harold LeDuc tennis

A shadow was cast on his life with the advent of WWII. Hal talked about losing his friend John Minogue, the first Anaheim boy killed in WWII. Minogue, who was four years older than Hal and lived on the 600 block of Claudina, lost his life during a mission on Aug. 1, 1943 to bomb Romania’s Ploesti oil refinery, which was occupied by Nazi Germany.

“It turned out the raid wasn’t the surprise they thought it was. The Germans knew they were coming,” said LeDuc, who added that the mission was deemed a success, even though 54 of the 177 bombers that took part were lost, including the plane piloted by 2nd Lieutenant Minogue.

LeDuc fought as a tail gunner in the Pacific Theater with the US Army Air Corp, 5th Air Force, 380th Bomb Group, 529th Bomb Squadron from February 1943 to December 1945. A staff sergeant, LeDuc flew 25 missions, taking off and landing on a crude runway hacked out of the jungle. As a newspaper article about LeDuc documented (see below), he had several close calls but came home to take up residence again in Anaheim.

He married his first wife Doris and raised his family at a home on Birchmont Drive. Doris passed away from cancer in 1976. He then married Carol Young and their combined families included eight children, 23 grand-children and 11 great-grandchildren.

Hal LeDuc's World War II Article-1_edited-2Hal LeDuc's World War II Article-2

Filed Under: In Memory
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